Ramblings of a married mum of two

Hare and Tortoise at Nottingham Playhouse

At the weekend we were invited to go and watch the ‘Hare and Tortoise’; a show currently showing at Nottingham Playhouse. It is a re-do of the classic tale and it promised to be fun. The Monkey and The Mouse were very excited on arriving at the Playhouse and realising we were going to see a ‘Show’.We went through to the Neville Studio; a small intimate theatre and saw that Cushions had been set up for visitors to sit on around the ‘stage’, there were also a few benches and then rows of chairs behind. The Monkey and Mouse headed straight for the Cushions and got comfy straight away. The theatre had a really lovely homely feeling!The show was full of energy and fun from beginning to the end, a small team have put together a fantastic performance that is well worth a watch. The two actors (Adam Horvath and Elizabeth Eves) performed the whole thing and they were fantastic.

I was a little worried about the children sitting so close, Monkey has a tendency to get excited and I thought he may storm the stage; however he was enthralled a very good. He sat still and watched…..when he was supposed to and joined in when he was supposed to. There were some interactive bits and they really added to the experience.

The children were able to make waves for the performers and at one point children were plucked from the audience to march with the actors. Monkey and Mouse got a go at this and LOVED it – think it will stick with them a while! Photo from Nottingham Playhouse

The story has been brilliantly written; we watched as Hare excitedly waited for Tortoise to wake and to ‘Race Now?!’ and Tortoise answered ‘Maybe’ as she drank tea, took in the seasons and explored the world. The Hare’s expressions were amazing – I would liken them to an excited child who wants to do something ‘Now!!’ and can sulk if they don’t get to. Tortoise was a lot more chilled out and enjoyed every minute of not being in hibernation. They did finally get to race and…….well I am not going to give the end away am I?!

Photo from Nottingham Playhouse

So what’s the Verdict

Mouse: “It was brilliant and they did really well!”

Monkey “I really liked walking around with them, to help them get to the picnic [and trying to add things for the Hare to carry!”

We would definitely recommend this performance; it is aimed at children 4 – 8 years old and this is perfect. It is pitched perfectly, it is a perfect length too (approximately an hour) and both of the children said they wanted to watch it again! We will definitely be keeping our eyes open for further performances of this ilk!